


100

by en passant (corinthian)



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-19
Updated: 2015-04-19
Packaged: 2018-03-24 21:13:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3784477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/corinthian/pseuds/en%20passant
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I’ll see you in Hell, Yuusei.</p>
<p>--</p>
<p>This is my 100th fic on ao3 and I'm celebrating by writing an indulgent AU. Yuusei successfully got himself arrested, in place of Kiryuu. Some dark signer Yuusei, some terrible decisions, so forth and so on.</p>
            </blockquote>





	100

Kiryuu really should have expected it. Yuusei had never been a flashy guy, even when during the Team Satisfaction times. Where Jack had grown into his kinghood during those days, learning about the pride in a territory, in a cause in a way of being — the King’s road was becoming true — Yuusei had been content to stand next to him, or to Kiryuu or to support Crow.

Of course, Yuusei always surprised him when he least expected it. It had been Yuusei who had betrayed the team, after seeming to be the one who would stay forever. Yuusei who had given up first and Yuusei who had gone and _died_ on him.

The day they had gone to try and see Yuusei (again and again and again, even if they were turned back, that was the depth of their devotion, because they were a _team_ ) and were turned away, for good because Yuusei had had the gall to go and _die_ in prison, Kiryuu had made a promise.

I’ll see you in Hell, Yuusei.

It only made sense, after all. If Yuusei had gone ahead — _ditched_ Kiryuu and Team Satisfaction out of cowardice then Kiryuu would make him pay, when they were reunited. That was only natural. That only made sense.

That was why Kiryuu couldn’t stop his surprise and elation when Yuusei showed himself again. Not quite the Yuusei he remembered. There was something different about his face, about the way he stood, about the way he talked. There was a serene darkness to Yuusei’s face, a calm that he hadn’t had back with the team.

And that brought Kiryuu’s anger up again. He swung from being thrilled — of course, Yuusei _came back_ , Yuusei returned to him — to pissed as hell. What had Yuusei gained? What had he met on his time away that had brought such a change over him?

“Kiryuu,” Yuusei greeted him. The D-Wheel he sat on was black with red accents, it was out of place with the Yuusei he knew.

“Yuusei. You never died at all, did you? Haha! We were so worried about you, did you know? We tried to visit so often, but they turned us away. We cared about you, _traitor_.” Kiryuu hissed the last word, but his lips curved into an aggressive grin. “ _I cared_!”

“I understand what I did wrong, then,” Yuusei agreed, but there wasn’t a shred of guilt in his face. It wasn’t right at all. The Yuusei Kiryuu knew hated to be wrong, hated to let people down. The Yuusei he knew was burdened by his failures, but this Yuusei — the Yuusei in front of him simply smiled, welcoming. “I’m here to fix it.”

“Fix it? C’mon Yuusei, don’t be so naive, weren’t you always the one with brains back then? Team Satisfaction shattered because of you. Jack and Crow never came back and neither did you! Ahhh, I had to do so much without you. And you know what? Without you — without them too — nothing came of it! Look around you, Yuusei! What do you see?” Kiryuu sneered and gestured at the ruined landscape of Satellite behind him. “It’s stayed the same.”

Kiryuu had always been fighting for change. If Satellite was a pit of despair then he was going to change it. He wouldn’t be satisfied by something like a ruined territory. But Yuusei had died, Jack and Crow had never come back and nothing changed. Even Kiryuu had had to admit that there was only so much he could do alone.

“You’re right, Kiryuu.” Yuusei agreed again, with that same placid smile of his. “But the answer is something you never thought of. Don’t worry, I didn’t either until it told me.” Yuusei gestured, uncharacteristically fluid, fingertips curled up and pointed to the dark clouds above.

Kiryuu didn’t see anything there. Yuusei’s placid smile broke, became angular, half-anguished and half-elated.

“I’m still fighting for our present lives, for our past and out future, Kiryuu. I figured out the way I can save everyone.”

And, for the first time in his life, Kiryuu’s blood ran cold. Despite the schism in Yuusei’s expression, he was dead serious. Yuusei had been the only one who had believed such nonsense. Kiryuu had known, of course, there was no way to save everyone, no utopic world waiting for them if they conquered Satellite, there was only further goals, higher stakes, more territory. Jack had known, there was no saving Satellite, which is why he had run to Neo Domino. And Crow — _Crow_ — who was the most even-headed of them all when it came to living in the now, knew how to make the best of what they had.

Yuusei had been too much of a dreamer.

“Save? You’re going to _save_ people?” Kiryuu started laughing. It built up in his gut where his cold blood was pooling and overwhelmed his body. He couldn’t stop laughing. Maybe he was terrified. “You couldn’t even save yourself!”

“I’ve been granted a new power, Kiryuu. Don’t worry, I’ll save you first.”

Kiryuu watched as Yuusei pieced his expression back together. The anguish was tucked under the elation which in turn was folded underneath the placid smile. The only part of the previous — insane, absolutely insane — expression that remained was the slightly furrowed brow. 

“Me? You better look out for yourself first, _Yuusei_.”

So they dueled.

And, it was only after the first few turns that Kiryuu realized his miscalculation — he’d never beaten Yuusei at cards before.

• • •

Kiryuu woke up.

He had died. He was sure he had died. The massive hand of Yuusei’s dark god — wasn’t that wrong? Wasn’t that entirely wrong? Yuusei had said he was going to _save_ people and yet — had shattered his body and his D-Wheel. The last thing he had seen was his own blood in his eyes and Yuusei’s face. Yuusei’s face that had been again, split, because he had been crying, sobbing for all the people he’d just killed but also smiling that soft, knowing smile. It had been terrifying. Kiryuu could admit then, as he had died, he was scared out of his fucking mind.

Kiryuu woke up, he wasn’t dead anymore.

• • •

“You saved my life,” Yuusei said. He said it in a way that carried the world, like it explained everything. Kiryuu scowled, bared his teeth and then laughed like a hyena. The laughter just kept coming, before he choked it off.

“And then you killed me, are you happy with yourself, Yuusei?”

“I thought you’d understand, after I saved you.” Yuusei sounded confused. Kiryuu had figured it out, rather quickly, that there was just a _glitch_ in Yuusei’s thinking. Not like his normal logic hopping and dreamer’s heart that Kiryuu had gotten used to, but a blatant gap between how sacrificing everyone to the Earthbound Immortals was going to save the present. Except for when Yuusei had said, so earnestly, that if everyone was dead then there would never be a second Zero Reverse.

That, well, was essentially true.

“I knew you’d come back to me,” Yuusei added, almost proudly. “You — were always just so alive.”

That too Yuusei had explained. The drive and desire to be alive, the willingness to accept in a tiny crack of darkness to breathe (sort of) again. It was why Kiryuu carried the tang of darkness in his mouth now, the black sclera like Yuusei had and the same quiet whispering in the back of his head. It irritated him. The stupid god telling him things he could do, the things he could take, the dissatisfaction that the god could fix for him, if he just let it.

“And now what, Yuusei? You’ve never really been someone who _goes after_ things. Has that changed?” Kiryuu felt better when he was aggressive. The drive that had brought him back was the same screaming fear and anger that had called Yuusei a traitor in the first place. There was nothing for Kiryuu but the life he — had had. So now there were only those feelings.

“I told you, I’m going to fix everything.” Yuusei said in that soft placid way. Kiryuu could only imagine what the dark god had promised him.

“Who said it was your duty to do that in the first place? You were always a better follower than leader. Now you’re letting this power go to your head, do you know how many people you sacrificed to that so-called god of yours?” Kiryuu sneered. Yuusei’s blank smile twisted and he looked afraid, so afraid. He could feel it on the tip of his tongue, all he had to do was say it and Kiryuu was positive that Yuusei would crumble. But Yuusei had always been easy, they had always fallen in step together because Kiryuu had been magnetic, had been ready to admit that they were stronger together and because Yuusei craved that kind of bond.

“Kiryuu,” Yuusei whispered, and then added a heartbeat later, “Please.” His head tilted down and he looked at Kiryuu through his lowered eyelashes and shadowed bangs. His expression pleaded for the truth. For a moment, Kiryuu saw the Yuusei he recalled so fondly. Yuusei who believed in everyone and anyone.

But, as always, Kiryuu wasn’t really satisfied by just destruction. “When I thought you died I promised I’d see you again in Hell, guess I’ve fulfilled that.” He laughed and laughed.

“This was the right thing to do,” Yuusei said so softly it was almost missed.

Kiryuu ignored it and dropped his arm across Yuusei’s shoulders. “The new Team Satisfaction gathers.” He shouted, instead.

• • •

_What you’ve done may as well have been a second Zero Reverse._

• • •

The girl wrecked him. 

Kiryuu didn’t really understand it. He should have run her over with his D-Wheel but before he even got close a _duel monster_ ripped the bike out from under him. They had standing dueled but even with his handless combo everything had burned before her black dragon.

He realized that for the second time he was going to die. And all he could do was laugh. He leered at her and laughed and threw his arms open wide, since there was nothing on his field and nothing in his hand and all his most useful effects monsters were already banished from the grave. Somehow, her attacks were real and somehow he was bleeding.

“Come on then, take me back to Hell, girl.”

She looked at him with empty eyes and then her mouth dropped open and cracked a grin just as vicious as his own.

“I’ll be your opponent,” but then Yuusei, characteristically himself, stepped up beside him. And then, in the way that only new-Yuusei was, a small smirk graced his lips even as his eyes stayed so sad. “After all, I’m the Dark Signer that’s destined to fight her.”

The mark on Yuusei’s right arm flared to life and the girl’s also lit up.

“Very well,” she said. “Anyone with a despicable mark should be removed.”

It was only then that Kiryuu noticed the man standing behind the girl, almost hidden by a collapsed building. The girl who hadn’t wavered at all during their fight, who seemed to feel no pain and boldly attacked him with _real_ monsters. So, was she doing it all for that man?

Devotion was such a crazy thing.

She gave Yuusei a run for his money, and Kiryuu kept one eye on their duel as he moved around the rubble. Yuusei got oddly mouthy with her too, he swung between trying to convince her that there was more to life than this and insisting that this was what they needed, this is what would save everyone from further pain and suffering. Kiryuu was used to those jumps. He listened to them every damn day and in a way he’d started to believe in Yuusei. Yuusei had always had that charm to him, a steadfast earnestness that made you want to have faith in him.

Good thing Kiryuu knew better.

_Just kill him._ The dark god and Kiryuu agreed on something for the first time since the entity had popped up in the back of his head. He tore his gaze away from Yuusei’s duel — it was odd to see Yuusei losing — and shifted to get the jump on the man. They fought, but Kiryuu had the advantage, he was already dead.

It was only after that he snapped the man’s neck that he heard Yuusei’s urgent voice calling, Yuusei had been saying “Stop, Kiryuu!”

The girl wrecked him, again. Her power washed over the area, ripped everything to pieces except Yuusei. Kiryuu heard the dark god laugh and slip out of his body and flee back to Yuusei’s. Of course, he was left behind and betrayed again.

Only this time, when the anger and resentment burned in his chest, there was no second chance.

• • •

“I can’t save anyone at all.” Yuusei said.

He dropped his hands to his sides and let the cards fall out of his duel disk. They scattered and the disk displayed “forfeit” as its message. 

_I hope you’re still waiting in Hell to greet me._


End file.
